Outcome of Long-Term Video-EEG Monitoring

INTRODUCTION: Long-term video-EEG monitorization (VEM) is a diagnostic system used for many aims such as to categorize the epileptic seizures, to exclude the non-epileptic seizures, and to find the seizure onset zone. In this study, we aimed to emphasize the importance of VEM application in diagnosis and differential diagnosis of epilepsy.METHODS: Data of the 245 patients that were hospitalized in video-EEG unit of Dicle University Neurology Department between 2012 and 2016 was retrospectively evaluated. The patients records had at least 24-hour duration. RESULTS: Mean record duration was 3.3±1.3 days. Seizures that have clinically observed were detected in 37.5% (n=92) of the patients. Among them, 21.2% (n=52) of all was evaluated as epileptic seizures, 16.3% (n=40) were defined as non-epileptic seizures. The proportion of the psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES) was 14% (n=36). The mean of the first seizure record time was 1.6 days. Interictal EEG abnormalities was determined in 13.4% (n=33) of the patients. The mean disorder duration was found as 7.3 years. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Having history, physical examination and routine EEG procedure are misleading factors for diagnosing the epilepsy, VEM is crucial technique to differentiate diagnoses in patients with intractable epilepsy, to exact diagnose of seizure type and epileptic syndromes.